Guangdong studying a free-trade zone to include Hong Kong and Macau
The idea, floated by provincial party secretary Hu Chunhua at a Pan Pearl Delta forum yesterday, came two weeks after Shanghai won State Council approval to set up the mainland's first free-trade zone.
Guangdong authorities are studying a plan to create a free-trade zone covering parts of the province, Hong Kong and Macau.
It is the first time a leader of Hu's stature has raised the idea of forming a free-trade zone spanning Guangdong's borders with the two special administrative regions, adding weight to the proposal.
Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said he had discussed the idea with Hu and was also looking into it.
"I have met Mr Hu to discuss [the free-trade zone], but it is still in its infancy," he said in Guiyang , Guizhou province, where the forum was held.
No concrete details were offered yesterday about how the free-trade zone should be formed, how it would operate or what its role would be. But among the initial ideas was a plan to bundle the new zone with three existing special development zones in Guangdong, according to some mainland media reports. Those zones - earmarked as pilot free-trade zones - are Qianhai in Shenzhen, Hengqin Island off Zhuhai , and Nansha in Guangzhou.
If formed, the new zone would cover more than 1,000 square kilometres, making it much bigger than Shanghai's 28.78 sq km zone.